On the occasion of the refereeing days, François Letexier, who refereed the last Euro final between Spain and England, returned to the criticism of which French referees are the target.
“No one is a prophet in his own country.” “This famous adage”, François Letexier experiences it almost every day. At each outing, the referees are closely scrutinized and criticism can sometimes quickly take over. “The domestic championship is a long-term championship. There are matches every week,” recalls the 35-year-old referee during the refereeing days this Tuesday.
“Last year, I made 16 in Ligue 1. Only one went wrong. Today, people only remember that match. That’s where I got people talking in the press for a week Every time I give a successful performance, there is no line in the media We always judge the refereeing, that’s a fact, as we always judge in one way. general in society on many aspects, we always have a more negative judgment than positive. Arbitration is no exception to the rule.
Letexier referee of the Euro final
His colleague Jérôme Brisard thinks no less. “To exchange almost daily with foreign referees, in Spain, they have the worst, in England too and in France, de facto, we have the worst referees. We are lucky to have a certain regularity in the appointments to internationally. UEFA and FIFA trust us at this level.”
The proof, especially this summer during the Euro. Clément Turpin and his team officiated during the opening match between Germany and Scotland (5-1). At 35, François Letexier became the second Frenchman to referee a Euro final, during Spain-England. “If we take the figures, there were eight French people at the Euro. No other nation can boast of this record,” underlines Letexier. A little reminder to prove that French refereeing has nothing to envy of other European championships.
